Two held in Mexico over Malcolm X’s grandson’s death

AFP and Reuters, MEXICO CITY

Tue, May 14, 2013 - Page 7

Two men were arrested in Mexico City on charges of robbing and killing the troubled grandson of iconic US civil rights leader Malcolm X, Mexican media reported late on Sunday.

Pending further legal action, city prosecutors sent the men, ages 24 and 26, to the city jail for their alleged role in the crime, the daily Reforma said on its Web site.

Malcolm Shabazz, 29, died in hospital after suffering multiple wounds following a fight in a Mexico City bar on Thursday last week, prosecutors said.

The suspected killers, whose names were not released, are employees of The Palace Club, the bar that Shabazz last visited, according to Reforma.

They face homicide and robbery charges.

Police are also looking for three other suspects in the case, Reforma said.

Shabazz’s death put an end to a short, tormented life flecked with tragedy. He was convicted of manslaughter and arson as a 12-year-old for setting a fire that killed his grandmother, Betty Shabazz, Malcolm X’s widow, and spent years in juvenile detention.

He was in Mexico City to visit Miguel Suarez, an immigration activist who was recently deported from the US.

On Wednesday night, the pair visited the run-down area around Plaza Garibaldi, a popular tourist area where mariachi music groups play on the streets amid seedy strip clubs, dive bars and bordellos.

Malcolm Shabazz and Suarez strayed into Palace, a karaoke bar-cum-brothel away from the main drag. Police say they drank beer in the club and media reports said they then clashed with management over the bill.

Terrie Williams, a friend of the Shabazz family, said she had no details of the circumstances behind the death.

She was unaware if his family, which Reuters was not immediately able to reach, had any details.

“This is a family that has experienced extraordinary trauma and pain over the years,” said Williams, who issued a brief statement on behalf of the Shabazz family following news of the death.

Efforts by Reuters to contact Suarez were not successful.

Fights at Mexico City strip clubs are fairly frequent. Booze-fueled patrons who buy drinks for the women working in the clubs can find themselves confronted with staggering bills they cannot pay.